Game-ball.



L. STEINBERGBR.

GAME BALL.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 31. 1912.

Patented Dec. 15, 1914.

' Fig- 1- Fig; 2

; INVENTOR 2 37 ATTO NEY WITNESSES LOUIS STEINBERGER, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

came-BALL.

wearer.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 15, 1914.

Application filed December 31, 1912. Serial No. 739,486.

To all whom it ma concern Be it known hat 1, Louis STEINBERGER, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game-Balls, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in the construction of game balls, such as are used in the games of baseball, golf or the like, or croquet, pool, billiards. or the like.

The more particular object of this invention is to provide a new and improved ball which, in'its passage through the air, or over a support, will almost invariably be erratic, that is when the ball is struck by a bat, cue, or the like, its course, due to the impact, cannot be determined with any defind that it will veer ofi into a grce of accuracy. The player,

attempting to drive the ball in one direction will usually difi'erent direction in a more or less mystifying manner. 7 Among other important objects sought to be attained, may be mentioned I. To provide a ball which to all outward a pcarances, is similar to ordinary stander balls.

designed'for the same game, but which will heso constructed, beneathits surface, or cover, that when it is struck by a bat, cue, or the like, the force of the blow will, in nearlyevery instance,-tend to drive the hall in a different direction from that which would be the direction taken by an ordinary ball. H. To provide a ball of ordinary a pearance having a section at one side of the center thereof, of a Wei ht difierent from the remainder of the bal so as to remove the center of gravity from the center of the hall. HI. To provide a ball otordinary appearance having a weight adapted to move toward or away from the center of the ball so as to vary the relative position-oi the center of gravity of the ball. IV. To provide a bal of ordinary appearance having a pocket formed therein, and to rovide a weight in the pocket adapted,as t e hall roadapted to be caused to be moved along gle of incidence due to the impact. VI. To provide a ball of ordinary appearance having a runway formed therein, and to provide a member of a different weight from the remainder of the ball within said runway and the length of said runway by the effect 0 impact against the outer surface of the ball, whereby to change the relative position of the center of gravity of the ball in accordance with the force and locality of the impact. V11. To provide a ball of ordinary appearance having a runway therein, to provide a weight within said runwa ada ted to move therealong, and to provi e resi ient abutments within the runway for effecting the movements of the weight. VIII; To provide a ball having an aperture extending diametrically therethrough, to provide other apertures extending diametrically through the ball intersecting the first aperture, to provide closures for the ends of the apertures, and to provide a weight within the ball adapted to travel alon said apertures from one to another. D5 To provide a ball having means for varying the position of the center of gravity in accordance with the force of impact against the ball, and to arrange the parts-so that the ball ma be incorporated as the core eta larper all, or may serveas a game ball in itse f.

Other objects and aims of the invention,

more or less specific than those referred to above, will be in part obvious and in" part pointed out in the course of the following description at the elements, combinations arrangements of parts and applications oi principles, constituting the invention and the scope of protection contemplated will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawin which are to be taken as a part of this specification,

and in which I have shown a merely preferred form of embodimentot' the invention: Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view through a hall constructed in. accordance solid material such as electrose, or it may be of resilient material, suchas rubber, cork or the like. Extending transversely through the body 1 is a tubular passage, or aperture, 2, and intersecting the passage 2 is a second passage 3 extending substantially at right angles to the first passage and diametrically through'the ball. A passage 4 is preferably provided diametrically through the ball intersecting the passages 2 and?) at the center of the ball. Other passages may be formed through the ball, if desired, and all of the passages made to intersect at the geometrical The intersection of the center of the ball. several passages forms a central chamber 5 and the op osite ends of the passages radiate from tie chamber. The opposite ends of all of the apertures or passages are closed preferably by plugsas 6, finished flush with the surface of the ballto complete said surface and obscure the passages. A weight 7 is provided within the ball havin free access from the chamber 5 into any 0 the radiating passage.

The numeral 8 indicates springs or other resilient means which may be attached to or otherwise held adjacent the rear'surfaces of the plugs 6 for acting as buffers against which the weight 7 may impinge as the weight moves toward the outer end of any one of the passages, of the buffers causing the ball to rebound to a greater or lesser extent and consequently preventing the ball from remaining for any length of time in any one aperture while the ball is in action.

A ball thus constructed is obviously heaviest on the side which may be occupied by'the weight 7, and it is apparent that if the ball be struck on its surface at a point removed from a line extending centrally through the weight, and through the center of the ball, such line being indicated at.X-X in Fig. 1,

as for instance if the ball were struck at Y, the force of the blow would be absorbed to a certain degree by the weight at one side of the center of the ball, causing the ball to rotate in the direction of the arrow. The-center of gravity being removed from the center of the ball it follows that, as the ball moves through the air, a point near the center of the weight 7 will tend to become the center of rotation of the ball and this will cause peculiar gyrations of the ball, which due to the efiect of the passage of the ball through the air, will cause movement of the ball along paths impossible of predetermination with any degree of accuracy. Likewise the angle of flight taken by the ball due to the impact, will vary according to, and be controlled by, the force of the blow. A heavy blowwill cause more rapid rotation, and consequently a more pronounced veering movement of the ball, than would a lighter blow at the same locality.-

the resilient capacity.

marked by the intersection of the line X-X.

The force of the blow in all instances, howalong one of the apertures or passage-ways and to violently engage the resilient memher 8 at the end of that passage-way. Reb'ounding the ball will move back alon the passageway toward the opposite end t ereof, or possibly into the end of another aperture. .Again rebounding it will pass along that aperture to the opposite end thereof or possibly into. still another aperture. This ever, willcause theball to move relatively weight, the centrifugal force willbe iminished and the weight may move into a difierent relative position. The best results, that is the peculiar gyratory movements will be most apparent, if the ball is formed of a very light material and the weight of a relatively very heavy material.

The dotted line Z in Fig. 1 indicates the relative position of what would be the surface of a ball if the part 1 were considered as a core. I c

The modification illustrated, in Fig. 2, varies the construction above described simply in that it illustratesthe use of a single aperture extending from the surface of the ball inwardly toward the center-thereof but terminating short of the center. The weight in this instance is movable radially of the ball along the aperture or passage and will vary the position of the center of gravity of-the ball according to the relative position of the'weight along the length of the passage-way in the same manner as would the ball of Fig. 1 vary the position of the center of gravity of the ball relative to any one of the aperturesshown in Fig. 1. In Fig. 2, the depression, or passage-way, is indicated at 9 and is closed by a plug 10 engaging a shoulder 11 formed in the pocket and completing the surface of the ball as before. The plug may or may not comprise a weight, as desired.

The weight 12 may move freely along the runway as the ball rotates for continually varying the degree of eccentricity in the movements of the ball, or the weight may have a relatively close fit between the walls of the runway, if desired, so as to engage the walls frictionally and move only as the immediate result of impact at the moment when the ball is struck. In the latter instance the amount of movement of the weight will depend upon the force of the blow and upon the location of the point of impact. Mystifying results. as pointed out in connection with Fig. 1 will be obtained, and the degree of eccentricity of movement of the ball will vary only at each stroke or impact against the ball. The rattling sound which'may be incident tothe movements of a freely movable Weight will thus be avoided without materially decreasing the interesting character of the erratic movements of the ball.

Obviously the plurality of apertures or passage-ways in Fig. 1 could be made of a size to snugly receive the ball 7 therein in the same manner as described for Fig. 2, if desired, or a plurality of independent passage-ways, as 9 in Fig. 2, arranged at spaced and appropriately arranged localities could be employed if desired within the spirit of this invention. Y

As many changes could be made in the above constructionand many apparently Widely difierent embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing'shall be interpreted as illustrative-and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the "invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which as a matter of Ian-.

gua e, might be said to fall therebetween.

aving thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A game ball having a recess formed therein at one side of its center, a closure forsaid recess, and a substantially spherical member in said recess adapted to move toward or away from the center of the ball for varying the relative position of the center of gravity of the ball.

In a game ball adapted to be struck and having a runway formed therein, a Weight in said runway adapted 'to be moved along saidrunway by the force of impact for substantially continually varying the position of the center of rotation of the ball during any flight of the ball.

3. In a game ball adapted to be struck and having a runway formed therein, a

weight in said runway adapted to be moved.

along said runway by the force of impact, and a buffer in the wall of said runway, said weight being adapted to engage against said bufler and to rebound therefrom along said runway, whereby to substantially continually vary the position of the center of rotation of the ball during any flight of-the ball.

4. A game ball having a chamber formed.

therein, and having a. plurality of passage-- ways radiating from said chamber, and a weight in said chamber adapted to move into any one of said passage-ways for vary ing the relative positionof the center of gravity of the ball.

5. A game ball having a chamber formed therein, and having a plurality of passage ways radiating from said chamber, a Weight in said chamber adapted to move into any .one of said passa eways for varying the relative position of the center of gravity of the ball and buffers in said passage-ways, said ball/being adapted tobe struck, and said. weight being adapted to engage violently against one of said buffers in consequence of'the force of impact against the ball', and being caused thereby to rebound along said passage, whereby to substantially continually vary the position of the center of rotation of the ball during any flight of the ball. I

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LEO M. EISENBERG, L. GUSFORD Hanna. 

